Back To The Beginning
by BobWhite
Summary: Sequel to 'Boxed In'. Will Tony survive his car accident? Will the truck driver be found? Please R&R 2 find out more. Full summary inside.
1. A Difficult Night

**Full Summary:**

On the way back to his apartment from work, Tony is struck by a drunk semi-truck driver and thrown twenty feet into a telephone pole. Will he survive? And how do the others react to finding out that he's been in a car accident?

**A Difficult Night:**

**Getting The Call:**

Gibbs was still at the office when his cell rang. He picked it up and noticing he 'Unknown Caller' answered, most likely something referring to the case that they had just been handed. It had felt good to have Tony back at the office after his stay in the hospital. When he answered the phone, the realization that it had nothing to do with the case at hand at all hit him, hard.

"Agent Gibbs speaking."

"Agent Gibbs, this is Officer McCarty, I'm on the scene of a hit and run. I was told to call you. I suggest you and your team get down here."

"What's going on?"

"There's been an accident involving one of your team members. My senior officer must have worked with you guys before because he recognized our victim as one of your agents."

"We're on the way."

"We'll be here, we're still waiting for the ambulance to arrive, and they were coming from another scene so it might be a while."

Gibbs got off the phone and called all of his agents, when he couldn't get ahold of Tony, he prayed the agent was in his bed asleep and not the car that had gotten hit. The team met first back at the Navy Yard and then took their work vehicles to the crime scene. The paramedics had just pulled up and were getting everything they needed out of the back of the ambulance.

**The Accident Scene:**

"Agent Gibbs, I'm Officer McCarty, I'm the one that called."

"Where's my agent?"

"Medics are working on him now. Witnesses say the truck driver never saw his red light but that your agent's light was green. The truck hit the car and flung it into the telephone pole here. It took rescuers a while to get the car door open. I called you as soon as my senior officer saw who was in the car."

"The scene is ours. You guys can process all you want but we'll be doing the same as well."

"That won't be a problem Agent Gibbs. I'm Officer Jones; I helped you take those guys down at the Shipping Yard a few months ago."

"I remember you, you were very work oriented."

"That's what happens when your job is your family."

"I know what you mean. Do we know where the driver is?"

"No, and he could be home by now or in another county. It was a semi-truck driver. We put road blocks up almost immediately after we got the call. We had an off-duty officer on the scene when we got here; apparently he was headed home when the crash happened."

"We'll need to talk to him; after I make sure my agent is going to live."

"I'll give him your card so he can set up a time to come and talk to you."

"Thank you." _Gibbs said handing over his card to the officer and then moving near the scene to see how Tony was doing. The others held back to give the medics room but Gibbs needed to see that Tony, for the time being, was still alive._

**A Trip To The Hospital:**

Gibbs rode with Tony in the ambulance so that the agent would know that he was not alone. He told the driver to head for Bethesda Naval Hospital, that he was a military cop and that his doctor was Dr. McCoy. The driver relayed the information over the radio and was told that Dr. McCoy would be in the ER when they got to the hospital.

Two minutes to the hospital, the medic in the back lost Tony's pulse and shouted that they needed to be at the hospital now. Gibbs looked back once and noticed the medic performing CPR. He prayed that Tony lived. When they got to the hospital, the medics yelled out a bunch of numbers on the way in and Gibbs saw Dr. McCoy standing in the background ready to jump in when they got into the hospital.

Dr. McCoy barely had time to nod to Gibbs before they raced Tony to the ER…

_**More to come in the next chapter…**_

_**Please Review…**_


	2. The Hospital

**The Hospital:**

**Emergency Room:**

Tony was rushed into the ER half a second after reaching Bethesda Naval Hospital. Gibbs paced the waiting room until the others arrived and Ducky forced him to sit down. There was no talking at the moment; they wouldn't know what to say anyways. They had just gotten Tony back and now not two weeks after he was discharged for a gunshot to the shoulder, he was back in the hospital because some drunk had refused to stop at his red light. They'd collected the evidence and had taken it back to the Navy Yard before picking up Abby, Director Sheppard, Ducky and Mr. Palmer.

An hour later, doctors, nurses and the gurney carrying Tony was rushed out of the Emergency Room and to the elevator headed to the OR. The team stood up and headed in the same direction but instead of going to the OR, they went to the waiting room. The team was sullen, not understanding why this had happened.

**Operation Room:**

Dr. McCoy was in the OR with Tony, being his primary doctor and all. Having just been released not two weeks ago from a gunshot wound to the shoulder that had left him in a coma, Tony was now back in the hospital due to some idiot who didn't know he had to stop at a red light. Dr. McCoy was about to make an incision with the scalpel when Tony flatlined. They got the paddles out and were able to get him back after three jolts at 360. Once they had Tony back from the grips of death, they proceeded with the surgery. It wouldn't be till another ten hours before Dr. McCoy was able to tell Agent Gibbs or the team anything.

Waiting Room:

Gibbs and the team were out in the waiting room and Gibbs was pacing again. Director Sheppard tried to get him to sit down but to no avail. Tony had only been out of the hospital for two weeks and today had been his first day back to work. Everyone was pissed that this had happened but at the moment they couldn't do anything about it. The road block had been useless as the person that had hit him wasn't found. But an APB [All-Points Bulletin] had been put out as witnesses had seen the license plate number and told the police what it was. Either way, until this guy was caught, there was nothing to do but once more wait in the OR waiting room to see if Tony was going to live or not.

Ten hours later and it was the next morning when Dr. McCoy walked out. Gibbs was the first to stand up and that alerted everyone else to the fact that Dr. McCoy was walking out.

"Agent Gibbs, sorry to have to see you again under similar circumstances."

"Dr. McCoy, these aren't similar circumstances, but I understand what you mean. How's DiNozzo?"

"He'll live but he has slipped into a coma again. He had multiple broken bones, his left lung was punctured by a broken rib and I'm sorry to say that we were unable to save his lung, we had to remove it. Some of his broken rib punctured other major organs such as his liver which we were able to repair, one punctured his heart and we were able to repair that as well, and another punctured his left kidney and as well we were able to repair that as well. His left leg was crushed and he suffered a skull fracture. We had to remove a piece of his skull in order to relieve pressure buildup. We'll put the skull piece back when the swelling goes down. He had a laceration on his left side from the car being pushed into him and we repaired that as well. His right shoulder, where he'd been shot, was dislocated in the crash and he suffered intensive bruising on his ride side as well from being thrown into the telephone pole. He had intensive whiplash and he still has a neck brace on until we are certain no major damage was done. We'll do another CTscan in a few days when the swelling goes down. Now because of the swelling in his neck, we were unable to intubate him so we had to perform a tracheotomy in order for him to breathe. He'll look worse than when he did the first time he was here, way worse and we are still giving him blood infusions due to the amount of blood he lost before the firefighters could get him out of the car and to the paramedics. If you'll follow me, I will take you to see him now. He was moved from recovery to the ICU, his own room, so you'll be able to visit any time you like, just let the nurses know you are here for him."

Dr. McCoy stopped talking and the team got up and followed him to room 426, Tony's ICU room. Dr. McCoy opened the door and allowed them time to walk in before leaving the way he had come, silently.

**Intensive Care Unit:**

Abby was the first to move next to Tony, who did look worse than the first time he'd been in here, which was only like three months ago. He looked so fragile this time, like he would break if you touched him. The tube in his neck showed just how damaged he was. An intubation tube wasn't that bad, but trachea tube was worse than just a gunshot wound to the shoulder. When he woke up this time, he would be in for months of PT instead of just three weeks.

The team only stayed long enough to let Tony know that they were there and that they were praying for him. Ducky said he was staying and would let them know if there were any changes while the team was once again without their Senior Field Agent. They would head home for the night and get whatever kind of rest they could get before heading into the office to start to find out who had done this to Tony. Director Sheppard knew better than to pull them off after the fact that they had told the police that they were taking over the investigation.

_**More to come in next chapter…**_

_**Please Review…**_


	3. Comatose

_Italicized: For when Tony is in his Limbo talking or remembering someone from his past. _

**Comatose:**

**DiNozzo's Room:**

Ducky had barely fallen asleep when a nurse came in to check Tony's vitals. She nodded to the old doctor who had gotten on everyone's good side the last time the agent had been in the ICU. Ducky, he made them all call him Ducky instead of Dr. Mallard, which was probably a good thing since his last name was the name of a duck anyways. The nurse smiled slightly before writing something on Tony's chart and then leaving the room. Ducky had gotten used to checking what the nurses and doctors were writing on the charts in order to relay how Tony was doing to the others when they asked. With no bodies to autopsy, Ducky was always eager to sit with Tony. Mr. Palmer had promised to call if he needed any help with whatever he was doing.

**Tony's Head:**

_He woke slowly, remembering that he was supposed to be in to work today. Only something was different. Gone were his posters of movies and gone were his gun and badge from the counter that he remembered setting them on. Gone was the apartment he'd fallen asleep in. Instead, he was back in his father's house, asleep in his old room; something was definitely not right. A slight knock on his room had the door opening and he saw his little sister poke her head in. She laughed at him when she saw him still asleep._

"_Get up silly. Dad wants us ready to go to the party in an hour. Why are you still sleeping?"_

"_Sorry Karen, guess it was a long night last night."_

"_What do you mean? You just got home from DC with dad at nine. Don't you remember?"_

"_It's a little fuzzy? Did dad give me anything to drink last night?"_

"_You're too young to drink silly, you're only fourteen. Are you okay big brother?"_

"_Yeah, get out of my room so I can get dressed. And did you say party?"_

"_Did you forget already? It's Aunt Jenny's birthday party today, so nothing really fancy, we don't want everyone to remember that we are rich."_

"_But with dad that's never a problem."_

"_Exactly; come on, get up and dressed. I'll be in my room waiting for you; you know how I hate going downstairs by myself when it's just him around."_

"_Not fair, I have to go down by myself when you aren't home at all."_

"_That's because dad likes you. I think he wishes I was never born."_

"_That's not true Karen, you were just born different and that's the one thing I like about having you as a sister."_

"_Yeah I know, so I'll be in my room."_

_Karen left the room and Tony got up and into the shower. He got dressed and did his hair and then grabbed his wallet and headed for his sisters room. She was dressed in a summer dress and sandals, her hair was in a ponytail and she had a small coat hanging over her arm. When he walked in, she turned around and smiled. They were always close, the two of them, never mind that she was three years younger than he was. She was his little sister, and he was going to love her no matter what she looked like, how she was born or how annoying she got sometimes. _

_Yes, life was good for the DiNozzo siblings as they walked arm in arm downstairs and to their waiting father. Their mother was already at Aunt Jenny's house, helping her sister with the kids and making sure the house was in ship shape for when all the guests arrived. The three of them walked out the door together and got into the car and headed for Aunt Jenny's house not twenty minutes after brunch._

**Flatline:**

A long loud beep filled the air as the monitors in Tony's room started going off like crazy. Ducky was jolted from his sleep as the alarms started going off. He stood up and rushed to Tony's side as nurses rushed the room and then Dr. McCoy. A nurse pushed him out of the room and he watched as the doctors and nurses worked to bring Tony back. Thirty minutes later, they had him back but Ducky was unable to get back in to the room as they were still in there, and looked like they were about to take him for a scan or something. That's when Dr. McCoy walked out.

"Ducky, you need to call Gibbs for me."

"What's wrong?"

"As far as I know Gibbs is the one that Tony has down as the one that makes all his medical decisions for him if this was to ever happen again. He gave me the paperwork on his last visit, wanted me to know that Gibbs had Power of Attorney for his medical purposes."

"I'll call him now."

Ducky left the doctor standing outside Tony's room and went to use the phone at the nurses' station.

_**More to come in next chapter…**_

_**Please Review…**_


	4. The Long Wait

**The Long Wait:**

**DiNozzo's Room:**

Gibbs and the team got to the hospital in record time after Ducky's call. Dr. McCoy was waiting for them outside of Tony's room, where Ducky had at least been allowed back into the room to sit with him while the others raced for the hospital. Once they were all at Tony's room again, with Ducky coming out to listen to what Dr. McCoy had to say, D. McCoy began to talk.

"Tony suffered a small seizure, though not that anything was physically seen. We need to run a scan of his brain to see what is going on and then once we know we'll have a better understanding of what is happening to him. I will let you all know the moment I know anything more, but as his Power of Attorney Gibbs, I need you to sign off on his procedures."

"No problem, where do I sign?"

"If you'll follow me." _Gibbs left with Dr. McCoy and the others went in to see how Tony was doing at the moment._

"When did Gibbs become Tony's Power of Attorney for medical purposes?" _Abby asked._

"Apparently, Tony had Gibbs fill out the paperwork just in case he ended up back in a coma. He gave the paperwork to Dr. McCoy last week when he was cleared to come back to work."

"Well, that makes sense."

"I had been dozing when all his alarms started going off. The nurses and doctors shooed me out of the room so fast that I forgot to grab my cell phone."

"When did you get a cell phone Ducky?" _Director Sheppard asked._

"Well, since I was sitting with Tony last time, I figured I could use it to call everyone when there was any change. It's only a prepaid phone and I don't have to get more minutes on it if I don't want to, but now that Tony is back in the hospital, I think I need to get more minutes on it. Ah, here comes Gibbs now."

"Gibbs?" _McGee asked._

"They'll take him for the scan in a few minutes and if the scan shows anything, they might have to take him back to surgery."

"Well, we will all be here for him when he makes it through, one way or the other. But maybe we should wait in the waiting room. Dr. McCoy can come get us when everything is done." _Ziva said._

"Ziva has a point. Come on everybody, out of the room and Ducky; please don't forget your phone. Dr. McCoy will come and let us know what is going on when he knows something." _Director Sheppard said as the group left the room and headed for the waiting room after letting one of the nurses know what was going on._

And so the waiting began, all over again…

**Aunt Jenny's Birthday Party:**

_Karen was laughing at Tony as he jumped on the trampoline at his Aunt Jenny's house. The two were trying to see who could go the highest, but Karen was always the one to win. She had an advantage over her brother and he knew it, he just didn't care. Aunt Jenny let Karen be herself when the family got together, which meant she could show her true colors. It was almost like she knew the kids needed an outlet from their rough days at home. Mr. DiNozzo never really allowed Karen to leave the house unless it was for school or for family get-together's. _

_The kids were having fun with their cousins and who wouldn't? It was a beautiful day outside. The only downside to the day was that their father had to run off for an important meeting and had only been at Aunt Jenny's for an hour or so before leaving for the meeting. Karen and Tony were used to it, but it wasn't like they cared anyways, they had each other and their cousins so they were always having some kind of fun. Mrs. DiNozzo was sitting on the porch with her sister, watching as the kids jumped on the trampoline. It was always easier to be at her sister's house instead of her own house where she was constantly reminded of how rich her family was. A scream from the trampoline brought her attention back to her kids, who were nowhere to be seen._

"_Anthony, Karen? Where are you?"_

"_Mom, come quick!" Karen's voice pleaded as their mother ran from the deck, her sister and brother-in-law right behind her. _

"_Karen, what…Anthony, are you okay?"_

"_I'm fine, just flew too high on the trampoline that's all. Karen tried to catch me, but she was hovering to high off the ground. Guess I landed a little lopsided cause when she came down, I flew sideways."_

"_Let me look at you. Can you stand up?"_

"_I think so."_

_Tony stood up from the ground and his mother turned him around, poking and prodding to see if he was really alright. When she touched his arm, he gasped and she knew that it was either bruised or broken._

"_I guess it's a trip to the Emergency Room for you then. Sorry Jenny."_

"_It's okay, the party was just winding down anyways. Come on kids; let's go get their coats so Sarah can get the kids to the E.R."_

"_Dad's going to be so mad at me. I ruined one of my better suits."_

"_He'll just be glad that you are alright. We'll be home before he gets home from his meeting anyhow. It should be a short hospital visit."_

_Mrs. DiNozzo, Karen and Tony, who was cradling his arm, headed for the car and got in. There wasn't much sense in going home now that Tony was hurt. And his father would find out what happened when he got home from his meeting anyhow. They left Aunt Jenny's house and headed for the hospital, which was only really forty-five minutes away on a good day of traffic. _

_**More to come in next chapter…**_

_**Please Review…**_


	5. In Limbo

**In Limbo:**

**DiNozzo's Room:**

Tony didn't have to have surgery after his small seizure. It had been the pressure buildup that had caused it and they had had to remove the bandage covering the hole in his head in order for the pressure to be released a little, so now Tony looked a little like a conehead.

**The Emergency Room:**

_The hospital stay wasn't that long; in fact they were in and out with no problem at all. It was one of those slower days in the Emergency Room and the second they got there, the doctors were able to see them. When they left the hospital, the doctor told Mrs. DiNozzo that the cast couldn't get wet and that Tony would have to wear a plastic bag in the shower over his cast so it wouldn't get wet. She thanked him and they left for home. _

**Home:**

_When they got home, their father was still not home so Karen and Tony went up to their rooms and got changed into something more comfortable before coming down to help their mother in the kitchen. She had shooed all the maids and staff out of the kitchen to do something else while she was there. While their mother was at home, the staff new better than to be in the kitchen. Mrs. DiNozzo was a fare cook and always wanted her kids to know that it was okay to cook for one's self. Those that didn't come from money always cooked for themselves and for others so it was alright for them to cook for themselves as well. As their mother got to cooking the main part of the meal, which in this case was lobster, Karen went to the refrigerator and pulled out the makings for salads and Tony went to the cupboard to get the rice cooker out to make steamed rice, something they always had with lobster._

_When the rice was done, Tony helped his sister set the table and get the butter dishes out for the melted butter that they always dipped their steamed lobster into. They were laughing again, something that always seemed to happen when the two were around each other. They were laughing so loud that they didn't hear the front door open nor did they hear their father walk into the kitchen to see what was going on. They only knew he was there when he finally spoke up._

"_What is going on in here?"_

"_Oh good your home sweety, just in time for some dinner."_

"_Sarah, I already ate and if you would have stayed at your sister's house you would have known that. I stopped by the house and they said that you had to leave because Tony here broke his arm on the trampoline."_

"_It was an accident Anthony, you have to know that. Tony landed a little sideways on the trampoline and when Karen bounced back down, he was thrown off sideways. Even the doctors understood that it was an accident."_

"_I don't care! I hear from your sister that Tony ruined his new suit. Do you have any idea how much that cost me? He was supposed to use it for his upcoming dance and now I have to go out and buy him a new one. I'll be in the study. You can find me there after you've all eaten."_

_Anthony DiNozzo Sr. left the room and Sarah DiNozzo looked at her kids who had stopped laughing. Tony had an arm around Karen's shoulder, as if to protect her for some reason. She went to her kids and hugged them before telling them that the table looked wonderful and that they could always use the leftovers for lunch the next day. That brought a smile to the kids' faces and they went to help bring the food to the end of the table that they were eating at._

_After dinner and all the food and dishes were put away, Tony and Karen ran up the stairs to play a game of checkers before heading to bed themselves. They were laughing, because Karen was using her powers to win the game and Tony was trying not to let her win. But over their laughter, they could hear their parents arguing, probably about what had happened at the party earlier that afternoon. After the game of checkers, they went to their separate rooms and fell asleep listening to the music that drowned out their parents arguing._

**The Accident:**

_Tony was up before Karen was the next day. He was in the kitchen having some oatmeal when his sister walked in in a robe. She was rubbing her eyes, trying to get all the sleep out of them. Their mother was still in her room but their father was gone for the week, he had business to attend to in New York. Karen nodded at Tony before grabbing a bowl of oatmeal as well. They both sat together at the counter eating and waiting for their mother to come down the stairs. They were planning on going to the zoo today and their mother had told them that they could do what they wanted after the trip._

_Tony and Karen were in the back seat, their mother was driving her Cadillac like normal, never went anywhere without being in the car. The radio was on and a song was playing but which one, Tony didn't know. Karen and he were talking about what they were going to see first. They were always particular to the lions and tigers and Karen always said that one day she was going to work at the zoo. Tony was just about to ask his mother a question when she slammed on the breaks and swerved to get out of the way of the oncoming truck that was going the wrong way. Tony threw his arm across Karen's chest and held on tight, to make sure that she wouldn't get hurt in the process of what was going on._

_Their mother was unable to swerve out of the way of the truck and was hit head on. Tony always made sure that Karen sat behind a seat so that he could protect her if anything bad happened and he just happened to be in the middle seat when the car was hit. Keeping his arm over Karen, instead of going through the window shield because of his seat belt, he threw himself over Karen so she wouldn't get hurt in the crash. People were screaming and he was vaguely aware that Karen was screaming as well._

_Then everything stopped moving and Karen's screams turned into a whimper. Tony's back was hurting him and he thought he felt something warm run down the back of his neck. When he tried to move, Karen held onto him so he couldn't. He needed to see if his mom was okay but Karen wouldn't let him move._

"_Don't move Tony, you got hurt."_

"_I need to see how mom is doing."_

"_I'm alright kids; listen to your sister Tony. I can hear the sirens racing to us now, we'll get out of here soon, don't you worry."_

"_I'm not worried about me mom, I'm worried about you."_

"_I know you are honey, but listen to your sister. Let your sister be the big kid right now."_

"_I save her mom; I made sure she didn't get hurt."_

"_I know you did big guy, I know you did."_

_They stopped talking and let the medics take over. His mom was talking and that meant that that was a good sign. But it was getting hard to keep his eyes open and even though Karen told him to stay awake; he was unable to keep his eyes open any longer. The second he shut his eyes he heard someone start to scream again and his eyes snapped back open as he tried to look at his sister. She was smiling which made him think the only reason she had screamed was to keep him awake._

**The Hospital:**

_The next thing Tony remembered was being wheeled into the hospital. He must've passed out again without hearing Karen screaming. Karen was on the end of his gurney because she refused to leave his side. He couldn't see where their mother was nor did he know if they were taken to the same hospital. When Karen saw his eyes open she smiled at him._

"_Welcome back sleepyhead. They wouldn't let me scream at you when you closed your eyes again so I made them let me ride on your gurney."_

"_Where's mom?"_

"_They were still trying to get her out of the car when we left in the ambulance. She told me to go with you so here I am. And I thought you were supposed to be the big brother?"_

"_I saved your life didn't I?"_

"_You threw your arm across my chest and then covered me up, so yes, you did save my life. Dad will be proud of that."_

"_Speaking of dad, have you called him?"_

"_Yes, he said he was on his way back from New York. I think he's really coming to see mom though. I don't think he was that worried about you and me."_

"_He's our father Karen; he has to be worried about us if we are in a car accident."_

"_Yeah well, he might be worried about you, but not me. When I told him I wasn't hurt he scoffed it off like I should have been."_

"_Why don't you let the doctors look at me now?"_

"_I'm not going anywhere, but I will hop off so they can look at you. Mom told me to keep an eye on you no matter what, so were stuck together no matter what."_

"_Fine."_

_They stopped talking and Karen jumped off the gurney to let the doctors look at him. She stood in the corner but got worried when Tony started to fall asleep again. She walked up to him and grabbed his hand so that he knew she was there for him. He opened his eyes and looked at her smiling. She smiled back and warned him that if he fell asleep she'd start screaming at him again. He cringed at that part and the doctors laughed a little._

_The doctors bandaged his head and said that they were going to perform a scan on him, but that his sister was just going to be outside the room. Tony nodded the best that he could and made sure to keep his eyes on his sister as they performed the test they wanted to perform. When the test was over, Karen was allowed back in and the neck brace was removed from around his neck. His bed was lifted a little so that he could talk easily with his sister while the doctor stitched up his scalp, which was the reason why he'd felt blood running down the back of his neck when he was in the car. When the doctor was done, he was left alone with a nurse for a few minutes as he was called to help out on another victim from the same car crash._

_Tony looked over to the other room and though he knew that Karen couldn't see what was going on, he could see. The doctor that had been in the room with him was working on their mother. The nurse noticed him looking at the woman and moved in front of his view. Now Karen was interested in why the nurse moved in front of his view of the other room. She left him in the room and went out the door to look through the other door at the person the doctors were working on._

_When she saw the person the doctors and nurses were working on she screamed and ran back to Tony's room, climbing onto his bed and holding onto Tony for dear life. She had started to cry which meant that she had seen who the doctors were working on. The nurse put up a blinder between the two rooms so that nothing else could be seen._

_When the doctor came back into the room, from the other room that held their mother, Tony and Karen knew that their mother was not going to be going home with them. The doctor called in Social Services and then waited with the siblings as they waited on the Social Worker to arrive. When the Social Worker arrived, the doctor talked to her outside of Tony's room before coming inside with her._

"_Tony, Karen, my name is Sylvia. I understand that you were in an auto accident with your mother today."_

"_She was taking us to the zoo because it's our favorite place to go when she's home." Tony said._

"_I see. Do you know where your father is by any chance?"_

"_I called him on the way to the hospital while the medics were working on Tony. He's on his way home from New York as we speak. He had to catch a flight and all before he could get back here and then there's the security he has to go through so it might be a while."_

"_Well Tony will have to stay the night because he has a concussion from the accident. But I'm afraid you won't be able to stay with him Karen."_

"_But I have to. Mom told me to stay with him. And with mom dead, we're all each-others got until our dad gets here to take the two of us home. Please don't take me from my brother. I promise I won't make a sound if I can just stay with him."_

"_You know Sylvia; I can put a cot in the boy's room so that his sister won't have to leave. And after what the two just went through, it might be a good idea if she stays the night with her brother. She was involved in the accident as well so she'll need to be looked after just for the night."_

"_If you are trying to make a point Dr. Jackson, you don't have to. I understand where you are coming from but my department has their rules too. If the girl wasn't hurt in the accident then she can't stay here."_

"_So fudge your report a little. They just lost their mother in a horrible car accident and her brother is injured. Say she received a laceration to her arm and she needs to be monitored just like her brother does."_

"_You know that I can't do that Dr. Jackson."_

"_Then I will write up a chart and it will be real."_

"_Fine, I will fudge the report and make it so the girl can stay with her brother for the night. But their father better be here by tomorrow or I'm going to have to take both of them into custody until he arrives."_

"_Dually noted Sylvia. We'll see you tomorrow."_

_Sylvia the Social Worker walked out of the room and back upstairs where she had a small office. Since Social Workers were needed in hospitals most had offices where they could do their work without having to rush everywhere when trying to get to a hospital to see someone. Dr. Jackson turned back towards the DiNozzo siblings._

"_So now that we have that all figured out, who's hungry?"_

"_I am!" Karen said perking straight up after hearing something about food. Tony just nodded that he was._

"_Alright then I will be right back. I need to order you some food and the two of you need to be moved to another room as this is a trauma room and we're going to need it sooner or later."_

"_Alright Dr. Jackson."_

_Dr. Jackson headed out the room and a nurse and orderly walked in and pushed Tony's bed to another room which had two others beds in it as well. It wasn't a private room but Mr. DiNozzo would take care of that when he got to the hospital the next day. After some food was delivered, Tony, with Karen on the same bed, fell asleep in each-other's arms so that nobody could take them from each other. A nurse came in every now and then to check on the two but as of yet, they didn't have any roommates so there was no problem._


	6. A Driver To Be Caught

**A Driver To Be Caught:**

**NCIS Headquarters:**

Gibbs, Ziva, McGee, Director Sheppard and Abby were all at NCIS trying to figure out a way to catch the guy that had put Tony into the hospital. Officers Jones and McCarty were at the building with the off-duty officer who had called in the accident in the first place. Det. Johnson had been on his way home when the light he was waiting on had turned green. It had also been the same light Tony had been waiting on and Det. Johnson was behind Tony when he started moving forward.

According to Det. Johnson, the truck never hit the brakes as he headed through the light. The truck kept going after hitting DiNozzo's car and sending it into the nearest telephone pole. He'd been able to get the license plate number as had many other witnesses and had given them to Officer Jones and McCarty when they'd pulled up. Also, though he was off-duty, he said he'd recognized DiNozzo from the shooting at the Ship Yard a few months ago and had also heard about him through the grape-vine at work from someone who used to work with DiNozzo when he was a Baltimore cop.

After hearing from Det. Johnson as well as the other witnesses that had come to try and help in any way that they could, Gibbs and the team got to work trying to find the truck. Local police had been unable to find the truck as they didn't have the resources that NCIS did so McGee put out a BOLO for the truck using the license and then started putting all the witness statements together to see if they could pinpoint the direction that the truck was headed in so they knew which way to look.

Ziva started calling back some of the witnesses to get an accurate account of the night and while she was doing that Director Sheppard and Gibbs went up to MTAC to see if any of their contacts would be able to come up with something useful. With everyone busy upstairs, Abby had Palmer in her lab to help her in any way that he could. Usually Abby didn't like help when it came to her lab unless it was McGee but desperate times called for desperate measures. If Palmer could help in any way than he should be able to help instead of just sitting in Autopsy doing nothing and according to Palmer, he really did want to help.

**Finding The Truck:**

McGee was just about to call Gibbs down from MTAC when he walked into the squad room.

"What have you got McGee?"

"Boss, I think we've found the truck that hit Tony. We were looking at all the BOLO's for the past few days and were looking at the license number we got, well when we put the two together, a ping hit and the truck popped up on our radar."

"The truck belongs to a Kyle Jackson. He used to be a doctor until he was sued for malpractice."

"So what does this have to do with DiNozzo?"

"It was Tony's father that sued Dr. Jackson for malpractice. According to the lawsuit, Dr. Jackson had been drunk when he worked on both Tony and his mother after a car crash. Tony had whiplash and a concussion after throwing himself over his sister to save her life. And according to both Tony and his sister, their mother was talking and telling them what to do while they were in the car waiting for rescue to come." _Ziva said._

"So this Dr. Jackson finds out that Tony works in the city and decides to teach his family a lesson and rams him. It doesn't make sense, not after all this time."

"Maybe it was a crime of circumstances. He just happened to be at the same light as DiNozzo was. He figured that since he knew Tony as a kid then he could get revenge on something that might not have been his fault. What does it say about the lawsuit?" _Director Sheppard asked._

"That Dr. Jackson was found guilty and was fired from the hospital after the hospital had to pay the sum of $2.5 million to the DiNozzo family because of the loss. Dr. Jackson had admitted to having a drink with a friend before coming to work but that it was out of his system by the time the DiNozzo family showed up at the hospital. But a few nurses said that they could smell the alcohol on his breath and the Social Worker that he'd called down to talk to the kids said that she'd smelt alcohol on his breath."

"Well we need to find out where he lives and see if we can talk to him."

"Already have his address. Here you are Boss."

"Come on, what are we waiting for. We have a suspect to interview."

They left the building and headed for the address that McGee had found for the former Dr. Kyle Jackson. When they got there, they saw the rig parked out back and noticed that someone seemed to be home.

**An Arrest To Be Made:**

Gibbs, Ziva and McGee got out of the car and headed for the front door. They were met by the former Dr. Kyle Jackson as he opened the door and looked at them.

"I know why you're here and I've been waiting for you. I know what I did was wrong and I do feel sorry for it, but that guy should have spoken up all those years ago and told the courts that I wasn't drunk. When I saw him the other night waiting for his light to turn green, I saw red. When he went forward, I saw a chance I knew wouldn't come again. I've told my wife what I did and she told me that I needed to turn myself in. I do hope that he is going to be okay, please tell me that he is going to be okay."

"Kyle is that the police?"

"Yes sweetheart it is."

"Well, then it's about time. Hello officers. Kyle here told me what he did and I told him that he needed to turn himself in. When I saw that you were looking for his truck I told him and he said he didn't have to be in to work for a few days. He wouldn't tell me why he hit the man; just that he got mad all of a sudden."

"Thank you mam, but we will need to take your husband into custody now. And for the record Mr. Jackson, they don't know if my agent will survive or not. He's in a coma. They're not sure if he'll even wake up." _Gibbs said obviously pissed off that the man had known it was DiNozzo before he'd hit him._

"Like I said I am sorry about what I did and I will pay for what I did for however long the courts decide to punish me."

"Yes, you will; mam."

Gibbs grabbed the former Dr. Jackson by his arm after cuffing his hands behind his back and reading him his rights. The entire ride back to NCIS was ridden in silence. They had caught the man that had hit DiNozzo. Now all that had to happen was for Tony to wake up from his coma.

_**More to come in next chapter…**_

_**Please Review…**_


	7. Waking Up

**Waking Up:**

**DiNozzo's Room:**

Tony woke up confused again. He heard beeping and realized that he was in the hospital again. He couldn't talk this time either but that's not what scared him. What scared him was the fact that he knew that he was in the hospital again but didn't know why he was back in the hospital. He had just gotten out of the hospital so why was he back at the hospital if he was okay to go back to work?

Noise beside his head had him glancing with his eyes to see who was in the room. He saw Ducky reading the newspaper but had no way of talking to him. He understood that he could move his lips but for some reason no sound came out. His throat was hurting him so maybe it had something to do with his throat. So he settled on moving his hand to try and get Ducky's attention that way.

Ducky noticed the hand movement right away and looked up from his newspaper. When he saw Tony's eyes open and that he was trying to speak, he set his paper down and stood up, pressing the help button in the process. Dr. McCoy walked in after being near the nurses' station when the button was pressed. Upon seeing Agent DiNozzo awake and that it was Dr. Mallard that had pressed the button, he walked to the side of the bed.

"Ah, Agent DiNozzo, thank you for once again coming back to the land of the living. You had us quite scared when you were brought back in via ambulance. Gibbs was particuarly afraid that he might have lost you this time. But no such luck I see. Now, you can't talk at the moment due to the fact that we had to perform a tracheotomy to help you breathe, which basically means that you have a tube in your throat keeping you from talking but helping you breathe. It will be removed once we know that you can breathe on your own without any help. It'll have to stay in for the time being but I can get a computer set up in here so you can talk with your friends and teammates. How does that sound?"

"_Thumbs up," Tony's answer._

"Well I'm glad you approve. Do try and get some more rest, you are going to need it in the coming months of recuperation. Dr. Mallard, I believe it is best if you call Agent Gibbs and tell him the good news."

"I will do that Dr. McCoy," _Ducky said as he watched Dr. McCoy leave the room before turning back to Tony._ "You had us all scared Anthony. What, did you think we wouldn't be here? No of course not, you were only on your way home, how could you have known that you were going to get into a car accident."

"_Quizzical look," Tony's answer._

"Oh, my dear boy, you must not have been conscious right after it happened. A truck hit you on your way home after work nearly a week ago. Here, till that computer gets set up, why don't you just write what you want to say?" _Ducky said handing tony a notepad and pen._

"_I've really been out for a week? It feels longer?"_

"How much longer, my dear boy?"

"_Like forever. Coma's suck!"_

"You should have seen us in the middle of the week when you went and had a seizure. Everyone was afraid you would need another head surgery but it turns out that there was just too much swelling. If you could see yourself now, you'd say you looked like a conehead."

"_Please tell me I don't have a conehead?"_

"Not anymore, the swelling has gone down and they replaced the piece of skull they removed to relieve the pressure."

"_Well at least I don't look like a conehead anymore, that's all that matters. Why was I hit?"_

"I don't really know. Gibbs, Ziva and McGee arrested the man that hit you. They said his name was Mr. Kyle Jackson, said he used to be a doctor some years ago. They think he knew you when you were a teen. Did you know a Dr. Kyle Jackson when you were a teenager?"

"_I haven't heard that name since I was fourteen. My sister, mom and I were in a car accident and my mom and I were hurt. I ended up with whiplash and a concussion and mom ended up dead. Dad sued the doctor for being drunk when he worked on the both of us. But I don't remember much. My sister said I slept most of the hospital stay."_

"I didn't know you had a sister Anthony."

"_It's a long story. I'll tell you about it someday soon. I'm getting tired, need to get some sleep."_

"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere. I'll just step outside and let Gibbs know that you are awake. I'm sure there about done with talking to the guy that hit you now anyways."

Tony nodded his understanding before letting his eyes fall shut and then he was sleeping again. Ducky stepped outside and made the phone call that he knew would brighten everyone's day.

**NCIS Headquarters:**

Gibbs was sitting at his desk as were McGee and Ziva. All were filling out reports on the case when Gibbs phone rang. Director Sheppard had just walked in with Abby and Palmer who had contributed little but didn't mind seeing as they had kept each other busy.

"Ducky, any news?"

"You might as well put me on speaker phone Gibbs; this is something you're all going to want to hear."

"Alright, one second…there your one speaker. Now what have you got?"

"DiNozzo is awake, woke up about an hour ago. Dr. McCoy doesn't want to take him off the ventilator just yet, wants to make sure he can breathe on his own before he takes him off. Anyways, he remembers Dr. Jackson as the one that treated him and his mom when he was fourteen after a car crash. He said his sister was in the crash as well."

"Did he mention anything else?" _McGee asked._

"Only that his father sued the doctor for being drunk but that he didn't remember much because he had a concussion and whiplash and was told by his sister that he'd been asleep most of the hospital stay."

"Did he say where his sister is now?" _Ziva asked._

"He didn't but he wasn't getting tired and I let him sleep. He's talking via writing on a notepad. Dr. McCoy said he'd get a computer set up in his room to help with talking to everyone. And while you're at the office, would you mind grabbing something from his desk, I think it would cheer him up."

"No problem Ducky. We were just wrapping things up here. We'll see you soon. Tell DiNozzo that we are glad he's awake."

"You can tell him yourself, when he wakes up. He fell asleep as I was leaving the room to call you."

"Alright, we'll tell him ourselves. See you in a little while Dr. Mallard." _Director Sheppard stated as Gibbs hung up the phone._

The team finished up their paperwork before grabbing their belongings and heading out the door. At least this time, DiNozzo's coma hadn't last nearly a month. Maybe he was waiting for them to catch the guy that had hit him, whatever the reason, they were just glad that he was alright and awake.

**Remembering Limbo:**

The team arrived shortly after two in the afternoon that day, walking into the room with smiles on their faces. Abby had a vase full of black roses while McGee had a stack of Maxim magazines and Ziva had brought more movies for him to watch, mainly some more Disaster Film Collections that she had found and bought so that she could watch them and then tell Tony about them or just let him watch them. He was awake when they walked in and had a smile on his face. The computer had been set up so he just typed in what he wanted to say.

"_Hey Boss, sorry I scared you, again."_

"Just don't keep making this a habit and we should be good."

"_Did Dr. Jackson really hit me because of what happened when I was fourteen?"_

"He said that was the reason. He said that you should have spoken up for him all those years ago and that when he saw you at the light he just saw red and decided then and there that he was going to hit you." _Ziva said._

"_I couldn't have really said anything all those years ago anyways, according to my sister, I was asleep most of the time. Even in the car, right after the accident, when I wanted to go to sleep, she wouldn't let me. She kept screaming in my ear and waking me up. Our mom shouldn't have died. According to another doctor she should have lived a long time after the accident, but…"_

"But what? What happened in order for her to die in the E.R?" _McGee asked._

"_Dr. Jackson nicked an artery when they opened her up to get her heart started again and she bled out. There was nothing they could have done to save her after that._

"I'm sorry DiNozzo, about then and now. Do you know where your sister is?" _Director Sheppard asked._

"_She works in New York at a school for gifted kids. That's also where she went to school so it was easy for her to become a teacher there as well."_

"Why kind of school for gifted kids?"_ Abby asked._

"_She's a mutant Abby; it's one of the reasons why my dad wanted nothing to do with her after the accident. My mom never minded that she had a mutant child, but dad couldn't get over it. As soon as Aunt Jenny realized this, she paid for my sister's tuition to go to the school and she left about a month after mom died. At first it was hard but then dad started to take me everywhere when he left for business and then it wasn't that hard. Karen came home during the holidays and stayed with Aunt Jenny and I would stay with Aunt Jenny during holidays as well and we would get to be brother and sister again."_

"Must've been hard for the two of you to go through that." _Ducky said._

"_Karen and I used to do everything together. She was my little sister and no matter how different she was, I loved her. She may have been three years younger than me, but at the time she was all I had to count on in my life other than my mom. After mom died and dad wanted nothing to do with Karen, he gave me an ultimatum. Either I stop all contact with Karen while she was at the school, or I didn't go with him on his business trips. I decided to stay in touch with Karen. I didn't need the constant traveling. Besides, siblings are everything to each other and I wasn't going to let her lose her brother when she had just lost her mother and father."_

"Well we better let you get some more rest. We'll be here all night DiNozzo, don't worry about a thing."

"_Thanks Boss. And thanks for being here when I needed you all."_

"You kidding? We wouldn't have missed being here while you were in the hospital. At least this time we got to work on the case while you were in your coma." _McGee said._

"McGee has a point Tony. It was easier this time because you weren't in a coma for nearly a month. No complications baring one right after the surgery. Goodnight Tony, see you in the morning."

They all left and headed for the waiting room except Abby who said she would stay with him while he slept. Seeing him awake had her crying tears of joy though she wasn't about to make the same mistake twice and hug him till he couldn't breathe and then be told by Gibbs that she wasn't allowed to see him unless she could keep the hugs to a minimum.

_**More to come in next chapter…**_

_**Please Review…**_

_**Italics are for when DiNozzo is typing and/or writing on the notepad.**_


	8. Epilogue

**Epilogue:**

**Leaving The Hospital:**

Three months later and Tony was leaving the hospital on crutches. He was healed enough to go home, though Gibbs wanted him to stay at his house for at least a week to make sure he really was okay. He stayed the week, knowing that if he didn't, he would never hear the end of it from any of his co-workers let alone his Boss if something happened to him within that first week of his being out of the hospital.

That week out of the hospital was worse than last time. Because now not only was he on crutches, but he also had to take a shower sitting down with his leg outside the shower and with a plastic garbage bag surrounding it. He could take the garbage bag around his casted leg; it was the sitting down part that he hated. He knew how to shower with a cast on a broken body part; he'd done it when he was fourteen.

The getting up and down the stairs on crutches was what was bothering him the most. He knew that he had better get used to them seeing as his apartment was on the fourth floor and the elevator in the building was broken. Oh well, he would just have to deal with the stairs.

**DiNozzo's Apartment:**

Unbeknownst to him, Gibbs and Director Sheppard had pressed the buildings manager into fixing the elevator, saying that if he didn't people with broken legs or in wheelchairs couldn't get to their apartments and would have to stay with someone else. They also threatened to keep coming by the building until the elevator was fixed as well as everything else the tenants had complained about in the last year or so. So the manager had fixed the elevator as well as the heating and the plumbing. He'd fixed the molded out apartments and made sure that those that were in wheelchairs and on crutches were able to get into the elevator with no problem whatsoever.

When Tony got back to his apartment and was able to use the elevator he was surprised. The manager just told him that it was long overdue for it to get fixed. Heating and plumbing work too he said, also something that was fixed while he had been in the hospital, or so to say [more like with pressure from Agent Gibbs & Director Sheppard, that is].

With the help of Ziva, he was able to get back into his apartment and settled in. Ziva and McGee promised to stop by everyday to see if he needed anything and to let him know what was going on at work. According to Dr. McCoy, Tony wouldn't be able to go back to work for at least another month and then he'd still be on crutches because his leg would still be in a cast. So he got comfortable as possible on his couch and sat watching TV for the remainder of that day. When he went to bed, he fell asleep almost immediately, not even realizing how tired he really was.

**Back To Work On Crutches:**

A month later and still on crutches, Ziva came and picked him up for work. He wouldn't be able to drive anyways since he hadn't picked out a rental car and his leg was still casted. He also wasn't going to be doing any field work so he would mostly be at his desk doing whatever was needed from him. When Ziva showed up, she helped him into the car and then first drove to get coffee for the team and then headed for NCIS. Tony grabbed his gear, his badge in his pocket and gun already on his hip and got out of the car as soon as Ziva gave him his crutches.

When they walked into the squad room, clapping ensued but it was just mostly Abby and the team. Ducky seemed happy to see him up and about and even though he was only down to one lung, he didn't seem to hampered by it, though they would have to watch out for viral infections from now on since a cold would probably leave him bedridden for a week or so.

The day went by pretty fast, though McGee did get his lunch order wrong and though he was back to talking about movies, nobody seemed to mind. The team was back and they weren't going to let Tony anywhere near a hospital while they were around, unless it was for an appointment or something like that, then one of them would go with him.

As he and Ziva left for the night, back to the car to head to his apartment, he couldn't help think about Karen and what she was doing at that exact moment. Would he ever be able to see her again? Would she be willing to come visit her brother?

Will Karen and Tony be reunited?...

_**Please Review…**_

…_**Look for the Sequel: A Family Reunion coming soon…**_


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